Sunya, Archangel of Compassion

(from Bodhi <rob@v-wave.com>)

"Life is Pain, but shared pain is lessenned."

As a young Elohite, Sunya learned early on that life is filled with suffering,
and that it is only through understanding the source of that pain that the
pain is reduced. When one becomes distanced from the source of the pain,
and is able to reflect truly upon the reason behind the suffering, the effect
is then diminished. True understanding and unattached reflection bring about
a complete cessation of suffering.

However, one still recognizes that others suffer in the world, and the first,
best duty of all sentient beings is the reduction of that suffering. The
true etiology of the divine Word "Compassion" means "to suffer
with another." Thus, in the angelic tongue, one discusses being compassionate
by describing, quite literally, suffering with someone else. To Understand
all is to Forgive all: thus, servitors of Sunya seek to understand another's
pain, in order to truly experience it, share it, and thereby reduce its
effects.

Servitors of Sunya are constant reminders that Life is a tapestry of interwoven
threads. When one thread is broken, the unravelling affects many other lives.
The first lesson for all servitors of Sunya is that "no man is an island",
and that we all are interconnected at the most fundamental level. Servitors
of Sunya love Chaos theory, as this accurately reflects the Divine lesson
that a butterfly beating its wings in central park has an effect felt halfway
around the world. All things are inter-related. When we understand our inter-relation
with those around us, we see ourselves in our true Light.

Almost every servitor of Sunya has a copy of "It's a Wonderful Life"
on videotape, but their copies tend to be a bit worn.

Every act of compassion thus furthers Sunya's divine Word. This being the
case, Sunya has found that Buddhists tend to end up furthering his Word
quite a bit, since the root of Buddhism is the Compassionate Understanding
of all others. Thus, Sunya has a special fondness for Buddhists, although
he feels no pressing need to side with any one religion. All religions are
inter-related, after all. What matters the ladder used to achieve the Summit
of Compassionate Understanding: after one climbs to the Peak, throw the
ladder away.

Dissonance

Servitors of Sunya gain discord when they fail to recognize the inter-related
nature of people's suffering, and thereby mistakenly increase the amount
of suffering in the world by an amount more than they alleviate. If a servitor
of Sunya, through their actions, brings about more suffering than they alleviate,
they gain a point of dissonance.

This does not mean that they cannot ever cause suffering. Sometimes one
"must be cruel, only to be kind." However, if the eventual losses
outweigh the gains, and more suffering is caused than cured, then the servant
gains a point of dissonance.

Choir Attunements

Seraphim

As compassionate understanding and Truth go hand in hand, Sunya's Seraphim
have an affinity for knowing the true cause of somebody's pain. For each
person, a Seraph can know the True cause of somebody's greatest suffering,
even if this cause is unknown to the sufferer. This True Cause could be
an easy-to-interpret background event ("Your mother never loved you,"
or "You feel inadequate because you never finished college") or
something even more esoteric (".....Rosebud"). Thus, while you
know what the Root of their Suffering is, you don't necessarily know why!

Cherubim

Devotion and compassion combine in the cherub's attunement. Cherubim
serving Sunya gain the ability to literally suffer the pains of another.
They may remove any damage, or any type, from the object of their Resonance-attachment,
and take it upon themselves, from anywhere in the world.

Ofanim

Ofanim in service to Sunya, through their special affinity for movement
and places, can immediately tell where a subject would feel most at home,
at ease, at peace. Thus, they can tell where a person "should be."
This knowledge can be very specific ("you'd be Happy if you visited
your old tree-house") or very vague ("you should finally take
that pilgrimage")

Elohim

Elohites in service to Sunya know, for every subject, whether they have
Objectively alleviated more suffering than they have caused in the world.
Thus, for every mortal, such an Elohite knows whether their karmic balance
is in the Black, or the Red. Such information is often outside of the ken
of the subjects, as most people have no real idea who they have helped,
or who they have hurt.

Malakim

You only hurt the ones you love. A Malakite serving Sunya understands
their enemy to such an extent that they gain extra knowledge about what
truly hurts their opponent. Such knowledge comes only through truly understanding
and "connecting with" one's opponent, however. Thus, while their
attunement gives them a +1 to hit any opponent with any method, each time
they use this attunement they gain one point of the same type of damage
they are inflicting. (When you REALLY want to hurt somebody, you must suffer
alongside them while you Beat them to a Bloody Pulp!)

Kyriotates

Kyriotates generate no disturbance in the Symphony when they use the
Corporeal Song of Healing on the vessel of their Host, so long as they are
leaving the host in better shape than when they found it. Thus, some kyriotates
will have a stable of volunteers who are permanently Ill, and will always
leave their host's vessel more well-off than when they first possessed it.

Mercurians

Mercurians in service to Sunya can pick the names of the people most
affected by the subject out of the Symphony. Thus, they can know the names
of the persons who will be most affected by the loss of the subject, even
if the subject has no idea that these people exist at all. (Think Scrooge
and Tiny-Tim...)

Servitor Attunements

Shared Pain

This attunement allows the servitor to triple (!!) the amount of healing
done by any of the Songs of Healing, but the servitor must suffer the base
number in points of damage themselves. Thus, you could cure 18 Corporeal
Hits if you were willing to suffer 6 hits yourself. In a similar fashion,
the amount of healing for Ethereal and Celestial songs is tripled, so long
as the servitor takes the required amount of damage themself.

Forced Enlightenment

At the cost of 2 essence per participant, this attunement allows the
servitor to set up a "slightly more than metaphorical" connection
between individuals. Any damage done to one individual is also done to (and
felt by) the others. This, ideally, forces the individuals in question to
recognize the inter-related nature of all things, and the meaninglessness
of causing pain to others. Not a bad way to break up a fight, either...

Distinctions

Vassal of Karma

At the cost of one essence, a Vassal of Karma can pull out of their pocket
a small-sized gift. This gift is always "just the right thing"
to make somebody's day a little brighter. This doesn't mean you know what
it will be, or the significance of the object. It only means you get to
pull it out, and present it to the person. This could be their favourite
chocolate bar, a Cuban cigar, a replica of their childhoood toboganning
cap, etc.

Friend to the Lost

At the cost of one essence per event, you can explain to a mortal what
the world would've been like had they never been born. After a number of
such explanations, hopefully the hapless mortal gets the point that they
are an intrinsically important part of the Symphony. (Think Clarence getting
his wings by explaining to George Bailey why It's a Wonderful Life...) Great
for talking down those jumpers!

Master of Suffering

At the cost of 5 essence, a Master of Suffering can remove permanently
2 points of somebody else's Dissonance, but they gain 1 point for themselves.
They will do the suffering for others. They must work off this dissonance
in a normal fashion. Thus, you could, at the cost of 10 essence, remove
4 points of dissonance from a friend, and then work off your own 2 points
of dissonance in a normal fashion. NO DISSONANCE ROLL IS REQUIRED WHEN THIS
DISSONANCE IS GAINED, as it has already been "bought and paid for"
by someone else.

Rites

Servitors of Sunya gain one Essence when they...

Successfully Counsel a distressed mortal for 2 hours (the distressed
mortal has to feel better after the 2 hours, or no essence is gained.)

Help a Terminally Ill person by bringing Friendship/Joy/Happiness/Reflection
to their final days (spending 2 hours with a terminally ill patient talking,
holding their hand, etc.)

TWO essence are gained if they stop someone from committing suicide!...
however, the person must be permanently stopped: not just delayed. This
can be time consuming.

Alliances/Hostility

Sunya is Neutral to all factions. All factions are necessary... it is
the inter-relationship between factions that is the real "glue"
that holds the Forces of God together. Thus, Sunya sees all sides as equally
important as the other.

Invocation

Chance of Invocation: 4 (Sunya is always willing to lend a helping hand...)

Modifiers to Invocation:

+1 - a "get-well-soon" or "condolences" card
+2 - a handkerchief, still damp with mortal tears
+3 - 1 litre of blood, sweat and tears (not yours, but freely given)
+4 - a Suicide Note that was, in the end, never used.
+5 - one kilogram of bullets taken out of drive-by shooting victims
+6 - The Pound of Flesh closest to a Demon's Heart (if they had one, that
is...)

"Dear List,

One of my Players suggested this and was chastised appropriately for
it.

If you know one of the rare Malakim of Sunya, the Archangel of Compassion,
who has gained the distinction Master of Suffering you could get them to
take on all of your dissonance and being a Malakim they would never have
a chance of Falling. In fact you should take very good care of your unusual
friend, probably keeping him in a cellar chained up so he can't get into
any trouble. Then you can feel righteous in going back out and doing whatever
it was that got you the dissonance, because it will give your cellar dwelling
friend more opportunity to show his compassion.

More over if two such rare Angels work together they could swap their
dissonance back and forth and it would be halved each time. This works better
and better the more Malakim Masters of Suffering you have in your dissonance
dispersal bucket brigade.

It prompted me to make the comment, which became a house guideline if
not a rule, that "angels are not rules lawyers".